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United States/BOB & Other : Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

 

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smauggie
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18 Jul 2017
08:45:11pm
American Letter Mail was created by Lysander Spooner, and was operated in the city of Philadelphia. Only two stamps were issued, the one pictured below being the more common.

I recently obtained this page purporting to be trial color proofs. The presentation is disingenuous. In the earlier years of the 20th Century a stamp dealer was able to purchase the original plates used to print these stamps back in 1844. Per Scott, the plates were rusty and a limited attempt was made to clean up the rust, "No. 5L1 has been extensively reprinted in several colors," I have only see the six shown below, "distinguishable by the rust marks on the plate, which were mostly removed from the margins and gutters between stamps but remain within the stamp designs."

Somewhere there is a reference to a book written about the stamp dealer and his efforts to reprint these stamps but I cannot lay my hands on the reference at this time.

One of the reason that these and a variety of other local stamps were reprinted was because of the stamp albums of the day. They all had empty spaces for these local stamps and entrepreneurial stamp dealers were happy to reprint these and sell them to collectors who were happy to have something to put in their albums.

Image Not Found


Here is a closeup of the brown stamp showing various rust markings. It appears though that not all dies in the plate had rust. Some of the above stamps look fresh as a daisy.

Image Not Found

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smauggie
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18 Jul 2017
08:48:34pm
re: Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

I forgot to add that I have these both as loose stamps and hinged onto this sheet. One question I had to face was how to mount them in my US collection, perhaps others here have had to face that question.

As they were printed with the original dies I have decided to mount them with my other genuine local stamps but indicating that they are reprints.

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TribalErnie

18 Jul 2017
09:44:40pm
re: Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

Beautiful Antonio, I've always been fascinated with locals. Many of them are somewhat crude but I think that's part of their charm. You have to really know what you're doing to buy them though.

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51Studebaker
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Dialysis, damned if you do...dead if you don't

19 Jul 2017
03:35:24am
re: Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

These were often included in the cheaper 'stamp packets' in the 1950s and 1960s. They made the color reprints for the 1942 APS convention.

Image Not Found

Note the 'rust marks' on some of these reprints...

Image Not Found

Image Not Found

Your stamp is the second stamp in the second row.
Image Not Found

There are many eBay listings which offer these souvenirs as real stamps and at what I think are ridiculous prices.

Don

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"Current Score... Don 1 - Cancer 0"

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Author/Postings
Members Picture
smauggie

18 Jul 2017
08:45:11pm

American Letter Mail was created by Lysander Spooner, and was operated in the city of Philadelphia. Only two stamps were issued, the one pictured below being the more common.

I recently obtained this page purporting to be trial color proofs. The presentation is disingenuous. In the earlier years of the 20th Century a stamp dealer was able to purchase the original plates used to print these stamps back in 1844. Per Scott, the plates were rusty and a limited attempt was made to clean up the rust, "No. 5L1 has been extensively reprinted in several colors," I have only see the six shown below, "distinguishable by the rust marks on the plate, which were mostly removed from the margins and gutters between stamps but remain within the stamp designs."

Somewhere there is a reference to a book written about the stamp dealer and his efforts to reprint these stamps but I cannot lay my hands on the reference at this time.

One of the reason that these and a variety of other local stamps were reprinted was because of the stamp albums of the day. They all had empty spaces for these local stamps and entrepreneurial stamp dealers were happy to reprint these and sell them to collectors who were happy to have something to put in their albums.

Image Not Found


Here is a closeup of the brown stamp showing various rust markings. It appears though that not all dies in the plate had rust. Some of the above stamps look fresh as a daisy.

Image Not Found

Like 
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.

canalzonepostalhisto ...
Members Picture
smauggie

18 Jul 2017
08:48:34pm

re: Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

I forgot to add that I have these both as loose stamps and hinged onto this sheet. One question I had to face was how to mount them in my US collection, perhaps others here have had to face that question.

As they were printed with the original dies I have decided to mount them with my other genuine local stamps but indicating that they are reprints.

Like 
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.

canalzonepostalhisto ...
TribalErnie

18 Jul 2017
09:44:40pm

re: Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

Beautiful Antonio, I've always been fascinated with locals. Many of them are somewhat crude but I think that's part of their charm. You have to really know what you're doing to buy them though.

Like
Login to Like
this post
Members Picture
51Studebaker

Dialysis, damned if you do...dead if you don't
19 Jul 2017
03:35:24am

re: Classic Local US Stamps - American Letter Mail Reprints

These were often included in the cheaper 'stamp packets' in the 1950s and 1960s. They made the color reprints for the 1942 APS convention.

Image Not Found

Note the 'rust marks' on some of these reprints...

Image Not Found

Image Not Found

Your stamp is the second stamp in the second row.
Image Not Found

There are many eBay listings which offer these souvenirs as real stamps and at what I think are ridiculous prices.

Don

Like 
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.

"Current Score... Don 1 - Cancer 0"

stampsmarter.org
        

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